San Diego jury awards $18M to fired Allstate employee

A former Allstate Insurance Co. employee who was fired following an arrest has been awarded more than $18 million in damages.

The San Diego Union-Tribune reports a San Diego jury awarded 55-year-old Michael Tilkey about $2.6 million in actual damages and nearly $16 million in punitive damages in his in wrongful termination lawsuit.

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Tilkey was fired by Allstate in 2016 after he was arrested in Arizona the prior year following an argument he had with his then-girlfriend. Charges against him were later dismissed.

His attorney Joann Rezzo says the firing violated state labor law, which prohibits employers from considering arrest records that don't result in a conviction when considering termination.

An Allstate spokeswoman says the company disagrees with the verdict and plans to appeal.